RECORDS ARE MADE TO BE BROKEN

From above the clouds on Pikes Peak to the forest lined Nürburgring in Germany, electricity and technology proved to be the record breaking combinations for Volkswagen and Porsche, with both manufacturers recently re-writing the record books at these iconic motorsport locations.

While technology marches on relentlessly, in the domain of motorsport it has often been technical regulations that have stepped in to slow or contain this development. This is not because motorsport regulators are the fun police, rather that free reign on development increases costs exponentially, reduces competitiveness across category fields due to the varied financial positions of teams, and creates safety implications when cars become ‘too’ fast for the circuits they compete on. The safety factor will remind many of the infamous ‘Group B’ rally cars, which were eventually outlawed due to their speeds.

Outside the confines of race series requirements or as part of one off events like Pikes Peak, there is opportunities for manufacturers to unleash their considerable resources, marketing budgets and talented employees to create all new advanced projects or improve on existing technologies to create

vehicles with a new level of performance potential.

These endeavors don’t come along often but if you are even remotely interested in motorsport or motoring technology in general for that matter, it is a special treat, with results that enable us to sit in awe, dream and for a moment be reminded of that pioneering spirit when teams come together in the pursuit of achieving new levels of speed.

ABOVE THE CLOUDS The Pikes Peak Hill Climb is a unique spectacle, with real danger lurking at every turn. From the trees

PIKES PEAK HILL CLIMB Turns: 156 Distance: 19.99km Average Climb Grade 7.2% Total Climb: 1,440m Finish Line Height: 4,300m

lining the road at the lower levels, to the photogenic yet incredibly dangerous sheer drops without guard rails, the famous hill climb is a test of man and machine.

For air and fuel burning combustion engine vehicles competing at Pikes Peak, the thin air at altitude creates an engineering challenge, which plays havoc on engines ability to maintain safe operation and maximum operating efficiency. The thin air also creates aerodynamic challenges for every car tackling the mountain.

For Volkswagen and the incredible one off I.D R PIKES PEAK record setting vehicle, the thin air wasn’t a consideration for the all-electric motor, and with experienced racer Romain Dumas behind the wheel, the I.D R PIKES PEAK eerily quietly snaked its way up the 156 turn hill climb at astonishing speed, in the process smashing the previous outright record set by Sébastien Loeb’s one off Peugeot 208 T16 by 16 seconds with a 7m 57.148s.

This record breaking vehicle and record attempt wasn’t years in the making either. The entire project, from conception to the record breaking run, was a mere 250 days, pulled off by a dedicated team at Volkswagen. Mechanics, engineers and employees all came together with a clear focus and goal to build this special vehicle.

The I.D R PIKES PEAK was designed specifically to tackle the Pikes Peak Hill Climb, with a design brief to have the minimum weight, as much downforce as possible, and maximum power. The I.D. R Pikes Peak’s E-engines, together generate 500 kW (680 PS) and a mountain load (pardon the pun) of torque. Including its battery cells, the I.D. R Pikes Peak weighs less than 1,100 kilograms. The acceleration results are staggering.

THE I.D. R PIKES PEAK IS CAPABLE OF 0 TO 100KM/H IN 2.25 SECONDS— FASTER THAN A FORMULA 1 CAR.

Volkswagen employed simulation software to calculate how to achieve the optimum in energy demand and performance for the record attempt on Pikes Peak. The flat, streamlined chassis and huge rear wing were designed to compensate for the loss of downforce caused by the thin air high on the mountain.

Charging technology was another area that required new thinking, with event regulations stipulating that if the race had to be suspended, it must be possible to completely charge the car in under 20 minutes. At the same time, Volkswagen wanted to accomplish this with the minimum environmental impact.

With a high tech charging system designed, the electricity required was provided by generators at the foot of Pikes Peak. Glycerol, which in chemical terms is a sugar

TOP SPEED AT THE NÜRBURGRING WAS 369.4 KM/H.

alcohol, was selected as the fuel. A by-product of the manufacture of biodiesel, for example, Glycerol combusts with virtually no harmful exhaust fumes or residues. Glycerol itself is non-toxic and is even permitted as an additive in the food and cosmetics industries.

With seemingly every box ticked by the Volkswagen team, it was only the record itself that needed to be beaten. For the I.D R PIKES PEAK to then beat the previous outright record set only a couple of years earlier by manufacturer Peugeot with 7 times World Rally Champion Sebastian Loeb behind the wheel of a one off 208 T16 was simply an incredible accomplishment.

“It was a fantastic day for Volkswagen and one, of which we are very proud. The I.D. R Pikes Peak is the most innovative and complex car ever developed by Volkswagen Motorsport. Every employee involved in the Pikes Peak project has constantly had to push their boundaries and show extreme commitment and dedication. Without this, it would not have been possible to repeatedly overcome new challenges and come up with new solutions.” Sven Smeets, Volkswagen Motorsport Director.

SMASHING THE GREEN HELL On May 28th, 1983, Stefan Bellof started a flying lap of the Nürburgring Nordschleife in a Rothmans Porsche 956 C during qualifying for the 1000km WEC sports car race. As he crossed the line in a then record time of 6m 11.13s, Stefan couldn’t have imagined that time would remain uncontested for over 35 years.

On the morning of 29th June, 2018, that record would be finally beaten, in fact smashed by over 51 seconds, with Timo Bernhard driving the Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo around the 20.832km race circuit in 5m 19.55s. This results in an average speed of 233.8 km/h (145.3 mph) on what is revered by race drivers, engineers and enthusiasts alike.

The incredible record comes only two months after driver Neel Jani gave the modified Porsche 919 Evo a shakedown at Spa in Belgium, resulting in a new track record, lapping faster than the existing Formula 1 record set by Lewis Hamilton in 2017.

The Porsche 919 Hybrid Evo may look familiar, as it is based on the car that took outright victory at the Le Mans 24-Hours and won the FIA World Endurance Championship in 2015, 2016 and 2017, but it has now been unleashed from the WEC regulations, allowing Porsche to tweak the power train and aerodynamics.

The 919 hybrid power train, is in of itself a feat of engineering. The base power is derived from a two-litre turbo charged V4- cylinder engine, plus two energy recovery systems – brake energy from the front axle combined with exhaust energy. The combustion engine drives the rear axle while the electro motor boosts the front axle to accelerate the car with four-wheel drive. At the same time it recuperates energy from the exhaust system that otherwise would pass unused in to the atmosphere. The electrical energy that comes from the front brakes and the exhaust system is temporarily stored in a liquid-cooled lithium ion battery.

Removing the FIA imposed fuel flow restrictions from the V4, and equipped with updated software and regular race fuel (E20, containing 20 per cent bio ethanol), the Evo version increased engine power significantly from 500hp to 720 hp.

Because the amount of energy from the two recovery systems that could be used was limited in the WEC championship in terms of electric megajoule per lap, the systems stayed far below their potential. With full boost now being available, the e-motor output increased by ten per cent from 400 to 440 hp. racetrack, with a with a resume that includes five overall wins at the Nürburgring 24-hours, outright winner of the Le Mans 24-hours twice and is reigning World Endurance Champion with the Porsche 919 Hybrid.

Despite knowing the track like the back of his hand, Bernhard would have had to recalibrate his brain to

THESE MODIFICATIONS RESULT IN A COMBINED SYSTEM OUTPUT OF 1160 HP. IN A CAR THAT NOW WEIGHS ONLY 849 KILOGRAMS THANKS TO A 39KG DIET, THE POWER-WEIGHT RATIO FAR EXCEEDS 1:1.

To ensure the car stayed glued to the road at such extreme speeds, the engineers also updated the aerodynamics of the 919 Evo. The new, larger front diffuser balances the new and very large rear wing, both of which have actively controlled drag reduction systems (DRS). The hydraulically operated systems trim the trailing edge of the front diffuser and opens up the slot between the rear wing main plane and the flap respectively in order to reduce drag. Combined with other aero tricks, the modifications resulted in 53 per cent higher downforce and an increase in efficiency by 66 per cent compared to the 2017 WEC spec vehicle.

Driver Timo Bernhard certainly had the credentials to handle this hyper fast race car at this unforgiving cope with the speed at which each corner was coming up in front of him.

“Thanks to the aerodynamic downforce, I was flat out at sections I never imagined you can stay on full throttle. I’m pretty familiar with the Nordschleife. But today I got to learn it in a new way”, said the 37-year old German.

NÜRBURGRING NORDSCHLEIFE Distance: 20.8km Elevation Change: 300m Public Toll Road Cost of a lap 23€ ($36AUD)

The speed and grip of the car during the lap of the Nürburgring has to be seen to be believed and the on board video has gone viral since being published. If you have not had a chance to sit down for those 5m and 19s in front of the computer or TV, do yourself a favour, and try not to giggle.

THE FUTURE Both the Pikes Peak and Nürburgring records were set by manufacturers, and both involved merging power train technologies. While Volkswagen chose an all-electric platform, Porsche pursued its already well developed Hybrid systems in their WEC Championship winning 919’s.

Not only are these incredible record breaking achievements marketing master strokes, importantly they allow manufacturer’s the free reign to test the limits of emerging technologies that push efficiency and environmental friendliness. The learnings then filter through, to the benefit of the consumer vehicle market.

The new records are huge leaps on previous records, but it is only a matter of time before the planets align inside the offices and factories of another major manufacturer, who will have its eyes set on a record of their own. Where, what and who is next? We look forward to the possibilities.